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Mt. Charleston families feeling empowered after successful fight to keep elementary school

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MT. CHARLESTON (KTNV) — The power of community — that's what Katie and Sean Reeh said helped save Mt. Charleston's beloved — and only — elementary school.

We've been following the story of Earl B. Lundy Elementary School for more than a year now. The school had been in limbo since late August of 2023, when the remnants of Hurricane Hilary swept through Mt. Charleston, damaging the small school.

CCSD leadership spent much of the last year and a half going back and forth about what to do with the school. At times, it seemed like Lundy was doomed.

But this December, in a shocking reversal, the board decided to repair the school after all, which is what families on Mount Charleston had been pleading for all along.

1.5 years of uncertainty

The last year and a half has been a roller coaster for families like the Reehs, who have deep ties to Lundy Elementary. Their eldest son graduated from there, their middle son was a student there when it suddenly closed last year due to the storm, and their youngest son was supposed to start kindergarten there for the 2024-2025 school year.

"There's been a lot of ups and downs, mostly downs," Sean Reeh said.

Like many families on Mt. Charleston, they said they feared CCSD would forgo repairing the schoolafter the storm, especially given the school's small enrollment.

Those fears were confirmed in May, when families received a letter from the interim superintendent, saying the district would be recommending Lundy's permanent closure at a June board meeting, citing high repair costs and the fact that the school served only about a dozen students.

However, the board was never able to come to a decision about whether or not to close the school, and after outcry from the community, the interim superintendent later said the district was no longer considering that option.

Channel 13 was at that board meeting and heard from parents directly. You can watch that here:

Future of Lundy Elementary School still up in the air after CCSD trustees took no action on possible closure

Then, fast forward to August of 2024, when the district brought forward two new ideas: either repair the school or explore adding classrooms to the Mount Charleston Library, so Lundy Elementary could live on in another building.

At a board work session in August, trustees voted against repairing the building and decided to explore the library option, but Mt. Charleston parents weren't happy with that. They wanted Lundy back, in its original building, which they say was much more than a school; it served as a gathering place for community events.

"We certainly felt like that was kind of going to be the end of it," Sean Reeh said.

That feeling of hopelessness was exacerbated by the fact that the now-former trustee representing that area throughout much of this debacle was Katie Williams, who vocally supported efforts to close the school and not repair it.

She resigned this September after an investigation by the Clark County District Attorney determined she did not live in the area she represented — or even the state of Nevada.

WATCH what Williams said about the allegations in her resignation:

CCSD Trustee Katie Williams resigns amid allegations she actually lives in Nebraska

But the tides turned for this community in late October, when the school board appointed Nakia Jackson-Hale as the interim trustee to serve out the remainder of Williams' term before the newly elected trustee, Lydia Dominguez, takes office in the new year.

Jackson-Hale's term as interim trustee lasted a little more than a month, but in that short time, families on Mt. Charleston said she had a tremendous impact.

"When I was sworn on Oct. 30, I said that I would hit the ground running. So that first weekend after I had been sworn in, I took a trip with my husband up to Lundy for the first time. Then, I was able to go up a second time and meet with constituents," Jackson-Hale said at a December school board work session meeting.

After meeting with staff and constituents and evaluating the information, Jackson-Hale formally asked the school board president to allow the board to reconsider its August decision to not repair the school. According to district policy, within the first three months of being sworn in, a new board member can request reconsideration of a decision made up to six months prior.

So, at the Dec. 4 board work session meeting, a lengthy discussion was had about Lundy, during which Jackson-Hale brought forth concerns about potentially inflated repair estimates, among other concerns, including how families felt they were left in the dark for a while immediately following the storm.

That led to the board president, who previously voted against repairing the school, surprisingly bringing forth a motion to repair Lundy. That motion was ultimately successful.

"We can't thank her enough for everything she's done," Katie Reeh said about Jackson-Hale.

"Having people standing there, listening to you and picking up your cause is important," Sean Reeh echoed.

"Everybody in Clark County matters..."

Katie and Sean Reeh said they're finally feeling hopeful and optimistic after the board's decision to repair Lundy after all. It's been a long fight, but they're glad the community didn't give up.

"Even though it is a small school, not that many kids, there were seniors and people that don't have kids here that were coming out and voicing and helping us fight to make this right," Sean Reeh said.

They add, they'll certainly be paying close attention to who represents their community from now on.

"I think we just took it for granted that we had representation. If anything, this experience kind of puts a magnifying glass on that and we're very aware of that seat, that position, and I think that's a good thing because people should be held accountable," Katie Reeh said.

They also hope this signals to district leadership that the Mt. Charleston community may be small, but it's mighty.

"Everybody in Clark County matters and we're a part of that too up here, and everyone deserves school for their children within a reasonable distance," Sean Reeh said.

While we're still working to learn exactly how much repairs to Lundy will cost and how long that will take, district officials said the project will be fast-tracked, with the goal of getting the school back open next August — two years after it initially closed.

While there are calls from the community to expand Lundy to serve more grade levels when it reopens, nothing has been formally decided on that. So that means the Reehs' middle son, whose school year was upended when Lundy closed, will be too old to return to the school when it reopens, but their youngest son could be able to start first grade there.

"We live less than 100 yards from the school, so even when he was 2 or 3, he'd be standing over there, seeing his brothers play at school and that's what he was looking forward to and still does look forward to it," Sean Reeh said.

If you've been wondering where Lundy students have been going since the school's closure in Aug. 2023, the district initially bused them to Indian Springs Elementary. Parents said that bus ride was often more than an hour long for their young children, and they were uncomfortable with their kids going to a school so far away. Almost all affected students have since turned to homeschooling or requested a change-of-school assignment so they can attend closer schools in the Skye Canyon area.

Anjali Patel spoke with parents concerned about their children going to a school so far away. You can watch that here:

Parents concerned as Mount Charleston school remains closed

Families have really had no choice but to take it a day at a time throughout all of this, with the future of Lundy so uncertain for so long. The Reehs said that's been the most difficult part.

"It's been hard, very hard. It's been the hardest on our kids. Whenever I do bring up any news of the school, I have to say, 'This could change, don't get your hopes up, we're not sure,'" Katie Reeh said.

"We're just hoping that we can be a little bit more stable up here from now on," Sean Reeh said. "I really hope that all we have gone through as a community has helped some of these people see that the children are what really come first."